Telephone triage is a systemic process by which the nurse screens the patients symptoms for urgency and offers advice to the caller, based on the severity of the problem described.

A triage nurse is a highly trained nurse with a broad knowledge base in one or more medical fields such as; midwifery, paediatrics, geriatrics, general, etc. The triage nurse can offer nurse advice, advice about home-care or may direct the caller to the most appropriate healthcare setting.

The aim of the triage system is to gather all relevant information from the caller relating to the patients symptoms, medical history, current medications, etc and utilising that data to assist the patient. The nurse makes an accurate decision regarding the management of the patients symptoms and offers expert guidance. The guidance suggested by the nurse may result in;Nurse advice,
Doctor Advice, a
Treatment Centre Appointment, a
Home Visit or other medical services as required.

QUALITY CONTROL
Calls are systematically audited in order to assess the effectiveness of the triage process, thereby maintaining consistently high standards.